Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin has joined 15 other states in supporting a Trump administration rule that would allow small businesses to sign up for health insurance plans that don’t comply with protections required by the Affordable Care Act.

The policy, which has been blocked in federal court, would allow small businesses or groups of people to sign up for “association health plans” that are exempted from covering prescription drugs, emergency services and mental health treatment — all provisions that insurance companies are required to provide under the Affordable Care Act.

This week in Kentucky politics, candidates for governor and other statewide offices made their final pitches ahead of the primary election. Democrats running for governor participated in three televised debates, Republicans running for attorney general continued to sling mud at eachother and one of Gov. Matt Bevin’s primary challengers still thinks he’ll win. Jean West from member station WFPL talked to Ryland Barton for this week’s edition of Kentucky Politics Distilled.

Gov. Matt Bevin has crafted a new version of the pension bill he vetoed last month and is expected to call a special session for lawmakers to consider the issue soon.

The measure is similar to the one that Bevin rejected last month. It allows regional universities and agencies like health departments to exit the state’s pension system to avoid a spike in the amount of money they have to contribute to it.

With about a month to go before Kentucky’s primary elections, all three major Democratic candidates for governor appeared together on stage for the first time on Thursday.

During a forum held by Louisville’s Rotary Club, candidates differed only slightly in their stances on a wide range of issues including preserving Kentucky’s Medicaid expansion, shoring up public education and allowing casino gambling to generate revenue for the state’s ailing pension systems.

Gov. Matt Bevin has vetoed a bill that would have provided some financial relief to regional universities and agencies like local health departments that are facing massive increases in the amount they have to pay in to the state pension system.

Bevin also said he intends to call a special legislative session to address the issue before July 1 of this year.

Kentucky representatives of the American Cancer Society Action Network are hailing palliative care legislation signed into law by Gov. Matt Bevin. The measure establishes a Palliative Care Interdisciplinary Advisory Council and a Palliative Care Consumer and Professional Information and Education Program.

Prominent Kentucky Republicans are urging grassroots efforts to expand GOP influence in Frankfort by flipping the last two Democratic constitutional offices in the upcoming election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Governor Matt Bevin and Congressman James Comer joined incumbent officers and Republican office-seekers at the First District Lincoln Reagan Dinner Saturday night in Murray.

The Republican primary for Kentucky governor is now a three-man race. William Woods of Grant County filed paperwork with the Secretary of State's Office today.

Woods is a businessman from northern Kentucky who ran unsuccessfully for the state House in 2012.

He’s seeking the GOP nomination for governor alongside running mate Justin Miller of Florence. Woods’ campaign platform includes legalizing marijuana and casino gaming. He’s also in favor of keeping state employee pensions at full funding while eliminating pensions for state lawmakers.

Former State Auditor Adam Edelen is the third Democrat to launch a bid for Kentucky governor.

During an announcement in Lexington, Edelen said as governor he would focus on fixing the state’s public education system, protecting health coverage and generating new revenue for the state’s cash-strapped budget.

Edelen depicted himself as a new direction for Kentucky Democrats, saying that he is an alternative to “the stale scent of incrementalism and nostalgia.”

Governor Matt Bevin is asking the federal government for an emergency disaster declaration in support of Kentucky farmers. The request follows months of heavy rains and severe weather in the commonwealth.

The remnants of two hurricanes produced flooding and wind damage in many Kentucky counties, affecting yield and the quality of crops.

A judge has denied Gov. Matt Bevin’s request to reconsider a ruling that struck down changes to Kentucky’s pensions system.

Franklin County Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd blocked the pension law last month, saying that lawmakers had violated the state Constitution by not following proper procedure when they passed it.

Bevin asked Shepherd to amend his ruling to determine if the pension bill violated the state’s “inviolable contract”—a provision that protects state worker benefits from being tinkered with after they’ve been hired.

Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear says he will be speaking to a Fancy Farm crowd in August about his plan to restore “honesty and decency to government” if he is elected governor in 2019.

Beshear outlined his message for the annual political rally as he spoke outside Paducah-Tilghman High School Tuesay during a statewide tour this week. Beshear says he believes Governor Matt Bevin’s administration has been divisive.

More than 6,500 students from across the country — ranging from middle school age to college — are in Louisville this week as part of the annual SkillsUSA conference. It’s a showcase of skilled trades and technical education, and features contests in fields such as plumbing, masonry and carpentry.

This focus on students learning trades is also a priority of the Trump administration. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos toured some of the conference exhibits Thursday with Gov. Matt Bevin.

A federal judge on Friday struck down Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin’s plan to put in place “community engagement” requirements for Medicaid coverage that were set to go into effect in some parts of the state on July 1.

That also includes the entirety of the new program, premiums, co-pays, loss of automatic vision and dental benefits and lock-out periods.

Only 32 percent of Kentuckians surveyed this month approved of Republican Governor Matt Bevin’s job performance. Political Science Professor Joel Turner heads the Social Science Research Center at Western Kentucky University, which conducted the poll. He says despite Bevin’s low approval rating, his hardcore supporters appear to appreciate his recent efforts during the General Assembly.

Governor Bevin doesn’t anticipate the special legislative session planned later this year to provide all the tax reform solutions.

The governor reiterated his intent to call lawmakers back to Frankfort for a tax session before the end of the year.

But, Bevin says it won’t be a session to end all sessions on tax reform. “Not everything we would like to get done will get done necessarily in this single session,” said Bevin. “I mean taxes are an ongoing thing, not only for Kentucky, but for every state, everywhere. There’s always some moving part.”